In the dream, it was nighttime as I was traveling down the road that goes by the Sioux Falls Penitentiary and though I didn't see the penitentiary, specifically, I knew it was there, off to my left. To my right, I could overlook some of the city and as I scanned the landscape I instantly noticed the "imprisoned lightning" being held by the torch of the Statue of Liberty. I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing in the dream and I was blown away that I could see Lady Liberty all the way in New York City. It was a short but sweet dream that inspired me to dive deep into learning more about the statue. More specifically, I felt the pull to re-read the poem that is located on a plaque inside the statue's pedestal and to get to know the author, Emma Lazarus, more.
I had learned of Emma Lazarus' beautiful poem, titled "The New Colossus," a couple years ago via someone's post on Facebook but had forgotten most of it, including the title and name of the author. I guess the only thing that stuck with me was the powerful feeling of beauty that the poem had left in my heart the first time I read it. Once I Googled the poem, as soon as I saw the author's last name, Lazarus, I felt a wave of something powerful crash over me. Seeing the name Lazarus made the word "resurrection" rise up in me and in that moment I remembered that there is a story shared in the Bible about a man named Lazarus and also vaguely remembered that he had been resurrected from the dead by Jesus. This story instantly flashed in mind as I saw Emma's last name, but then I quickly put it aside as I went about reading and learning more about her on the internet. After I re-read Emma's beautiful poem on the National Park Service's website I clicked on her name so that I could read more of the back story about her and her poem. Little did I know that I would soon be surprised by a synchronicity in connection with Emma's sonnet.
On the National Park Service website it shares that after the initial popularity of Emma's poem, her "sonnet slowly faded from public memory. It was not until 1901, 17 years after Lazarus' death, that Georgina Schuyler, a friend of hers, found a book containing the sonnet in a bookshop and organized a civic effort to resurrect the lost work. Her efforts paid off and in 1903 words from the sonnet were inscribed on a plaque and placed on the inner wall of the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty." When I read that Emma's friend, Georgina, helped to resurrect her poem I was blown away by synchronicity. I think it's so cool that I had originally thought about the story of Lazarus in the Bible being resurrected from the dead and then I would go on to read about Emma's poem being resurrected after her death. What are the chances? It goes without saying that the statue itself is an amazingly beautiful work of art but I feel that Emma's poem brings its power to another level. It's hard to put into words. Poetry has the power to make the invisible visible. For me, I feel I needed to read Emma's poem in order to be able to see the true meaning inherent in the symbol of the Statue of Liberty. I am so thankful to be aware of this poem and I know that I am not alone in feeling this way about it. What an awesome friend Emma had in Georgina to work hard to bring her poem back into the public eye so we can clearly see what Lady Liberty truly symbolizes and be able to remember the song she sings to our hearts "with silent lips."
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| Statue of Liberty "resurrected" in Ghostbusters |
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| Plaque located in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty |
